More than Baseball

The York College baseball team won the Hank Burbridge Champions of Character award Thursday night at the World Series banquet. The award is presented to one team in the country that illustrates the five core values of the NAIA: Integrity, Respect, Responsibility, Sportsmanship, and Servant Leadership. Coach Nick Harlan and Alec Abend accepted the award on the team’s behalf.

Jared Stark, Director of Athletics, nominated the Panther team saying, “There is no doubt in my mind that this team deserves it. Over the course of this school year they have exemplified these core values to their opponents, fellow students, and community. I’m very proud of this team.” Stark went on to say how he was not surprised that the team won the award because of the culture that the coaching staff instills on his players.

Coach Harlan stated, “I’m humbled but very proud for our program. We ask our guys a lot when they come into the program. They sacrifice a lot and dedicate themselves to a certain lifestyle. This award shows them that it’s worth it. You live a certain way and people notice. You don’t do it for the recognition, but it obviously was noticeable to others since we were nominated. I’m very proud of this team and how they have represented themselves, the program and the school this season.”

Jared Stark told the team how excited he was for the school and now, “we only have one more trophy to bring home.”

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The Panthers (44-10) are the No. 6 seed in the 57th annual Avista-NAIA Baseball World Series and will take on the Embry-Riddle (Florida) Eagles, the No. 3 seed (48-13), at 5 p.m. CST on Friday, May 24. The Eagles are the No. 5 rated team in the NAIA, while the Panthers are ranked No. 9. A win on Friday allows the Panthers to rest a couple of days and play again on Monday at 8:30 p.m. A loss puts them right back on the field Saturday afternoon with a 2:00 p.m. first pitch start.